The site at Azor had seen many excavations, as of the 1940s (HA-ESI 116, HA-ESI 117, HA-ESI 118; for summary list of excavations, see ‘Atiqot 38:41–43). The current excavation was carried out within the precincts of the tell; however, its area (c. 2.5 × 5.0 m) and scope were extremely limited due to existing infrastructures. Three settlement strata, the earliest dating to the Mamluk period and the latest to the Late Ottoman period period–modern era, were exposed (Fig. 2).

Stratum 1 (Late Ottoman period-Modern era)

Remains of a building that included a wall foundation, a floor and an installation were exposed. The wall (W107; width 0.3–0.4 m; not marked on plan), discovered in the eastern part of the square, was oriented east–west and preserved a single course high; its eastern end extended beyond the excavation area. The floor (L101; Fig. 3), which was built of different size fieldstones in pale white-gray bonding material, abutted W107 and was especially well-preserved in the western part of the square. South of W107, part of a round installation (L105; diam. 0.85 m; Fig. 4) built of a series of coarsely dressed stones, was exposed; its nature was not fully determined.

The stratum was rather disturbed and it should probably be dated to the Late Ottoman period–modern era.

Stratum 2 (Ottoman period)

A wall (W112; min. length 1 m) built of fieldstones (c. 0.20 × 0.30 × 0.25 m) and preserved four courses high (0.65 m) was exposed. The western face of the wall was located beyond the excavation area; its southern continuation was covered by the foundation of Floor 101 and its northern extension was most likely damaged by the sewer infrastructure located north of the excavation area. The wall was not built directly on the remains of the previous stratum, but rather above an accumulation of dark brown soil that represented a short habitation hiatus.

The potsherds recovered from the fill next to the wall included fragments of bowls (Fig. 6:1, 2), kraters decorated with wavy combing (Fig. 6:3, 4, 5, 6) and jugs, some of which were handmade (Fig. 6:7). All the potsherds were of gray, inclusion-rich clay and dated to the Ottoman period. Fragments of a colored glass bracelet (Fig. 7) that prevailed in this period were also found.

Stratum 3 (Mamluk–Ottoman periods)

Floors and walls that joined up to form a general plan of a room were exposed.

The eastern wall (W110; min. length 1.8 m, width 0.3 m) was built of roughly hewn stones (c. 0.25 × 0.30 × 0.50 m); its southern side was preserved two courses high, whereas its northern end survived a single course high. The southern wall (W109; min. length 1 m, width 0.3 m), built of a single row of coarsely dressed stones (c. 0.20 × 0.25 × 0.30 m), was preserved a single course high; its eastern end, located beyond the excavation area, probably formed a corner with the continuation of W110.

Two walls, oriented east–west (W106, W111), probably represented an internal partitions of the room. Wall 111 (min. length 1 m, width 0.3 m) was built of dressed stones (c. 0.2 × 0.2 × 0.3 m), between which smaller fieldstones were incorporated; the eastern end of this wall abutted W110 and its western end was covered with the foundation of the later floor (L101). A single row of stones (c. 0.30 × 0.25 × 0.30 m), standing a single course high, was preserved of W106 (min. length 0.7, width 0.35 m; Fig. 5). Its western end was covered by the foundation of Floor 101, whereas its eastern end did not reach W110. This gap should probably be interpreted as a passage or an opening.

A floor (Loci 114, 115) of small irregular stones abutted W110, but underlay Walls 106 and 111. Therefore, these walls constituted a later (technical?) phase in the construction of the building.

The ceramic assemblage included fragments of bowls (Fig. 6:8), green or yellow glazed bowls (Fig. 6:9, 10), kraters (Fig. 6:11) and cooking pots (Fig. 6:12, 13), which were characteristic of the transition phase between the Mamluk (thirteenth–fourteenth century CE) and the Ottoman periods.

The scant finds recovered from the excavation was due to its small scope and the inability to investigate earlier strata, although the excavated square was within the area of their existence. A gap between the floors of Stratum 3 (Mamluk–Ottoman periods) and the construction of W112 (Ottoman period) suggests that this area of the tell was uninhabited for a short period.

The results of the excavation contribute to the accumulated knowledge of the site and to the better understanding of the history of Azor.